Dems think Pres. Elect Barack Obama not assertive enough
"[Barack Obama's] going to have to be more assertive than he's been. At a time of great crisis with mortgage foreclosures and autos, he says we only have one president at a time," House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank, D-Mass., told consumer advocates, adding, "I'm afraid that overstates the number of presidents we have. He's [Obama] got to remedy that situation."
Other:
Bush wants to strip Congress of power to halt mining
The Bureau of Land Management, which manages 258 million acres of federal property, stripped from its regulations yesterday a provision that gives two congressional committees the power to compel the Interior secretary to temporarily place public land off limits to mining and to oil and gas development.
Rep. Raul Grijalva, an Arizona Democrat and top candidate for interior secretary under President-elect Barack Obama, attempted to employ the provision for the first time in more than 20 years earlier this year in an effort to halt uranium mining near the Grand Canyon.
The House Natural Resources Committee passed a measure to block the mining, 20-2, but the Interior Department has yet to issue an emergency withdrawal, saying that there were not enough Republicans present for a quorum.
In a written statement yesterday, Grijalva said that the last-minute change was part of a strategy by the Bush administration to avoid complying with the resolution.
Semi-Related:
Rove Vows To 'Name Names'
(CNN) – Enemies of President Bush take heed: Karl Rove is set to name names.
The man widely credited with Bush's two presidential victories says his new book will include an accounting of those in Washington who never accepted the president as a legitimate commander-in-chief.
"I've got behind-the-scenes episodes that are going to show how unreceiving they were of this man as president of the United States," Rove told Cox News in an interview published Sunday. "I'm going to name names and show examples."
Rove signed a deal with publishing giant Simon & Schuster last year, reported be worth over $1.5 million.
More:
The Subversion of the EPA
The Bush administration has weakened the agency charged with safeguarding health and the environment by John Shiffman and John Sullivan (Philadelphia Inquirer Staff Writers)
Part One: An Eroding Mission at EPA
The Bush administration systematically weakened the EPA's mission to protect.
Part Two: EPA's Court Follies Sow Doubt, Delay
Skeptical judges repeatedly voided the EPA's attempts to end-run Congress.
Part Three: Green Club An EPA Charade
Major flaws mar a voluntary program promoted as a solution for global warming, i.e., the EPA touts the perk-filled program, but has recruited some firms with dismal environmental records.
Part Four: Politics Choke Clean-Air Efforts
The EPA-chief sets air-polution rules that appall his own scientific advisors. Scientists say the EPA chief bowed to pressure from the White House, hampering pollution-control efforts.